Owned: An Alpha Anthology

Chapter 8

I hope he gives up, but I know he won"t. Not until he"s exhausted all avenues.

f.u.c.k.

I look at the room I"ve just stepped into. It"s a fundraising event for breast cancer research, and it"s decorated in pink and white. They"ve pulled out all the stops with balloons, flowers, candles, and pretty party lights everywhere. It"s like a magical wonderland, and I stare in awe. I wish I had my camera with me; I could get some amazing photos of all this.

Jett pulls me close and murmurs against my ear, "Thank you for coming tonight."

He called me four hours ago and asked me to come. I didn"t hesitate to say yes. Smiling at him, I say, "Any excuse to wear a party dress."

"I"ll remember that," he promises while scanning the room. His gaze settles on the bar. "I"m gonna go get some drinks. What would you like?"

"Surprise me with a c.o.c.ktail."

He nods. "Will do. You"ll be right at the table with the boys?"

"Absolutely. I"m looking forward to hanging out with them tonight."

"Good. They"re looking forward to it, too."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. They like you. Told me not to f.u.c.k it up."

I turn to face him and loop my hands around his neck. He bends to give me a quick kiss, and when we pull apart, I say, "I"m so happy I decided to go on a date with you, Jett Vaughn."

"Me too, sweetheart. You"ve no idea just how happy."

I like his honesty, and the fact he doesn"t hesitate to make himself vulnerable to me.

"Okay, go. If you get enough c.o.c.ktails in me tonight, you might get your way with me later."

"Really? I think your s.e.x addiction would guarantee me that without c.o.c.ktails."

"Yeah, yeah," I mutter. He"s totally right. I shove him gently. "Go."

He gives me one last s.e.xy grin and then leaves. I admire him as he walks away. Jett"s wearing a suit tonight and looks so hot I"m sure we"ll have to leave early so I can satisfy my addiction.

"Presley!"

I turn to find West motioning for me to join the rest of the band at the table. I"m surprised none of them brought a date tonight. I"m the only woman in the group. I make my way over to them and take a seat.

"Looking good, babe," West says, his eyes gazing appreciatively at my body for a moment. I"m wearing a fitted, floor-length black evening dress, that has gorgeous beading over the thin straps and a long slit that ends mid thigh. Jett"s eyes almost bulged out of his head when he picked me up.

"f.u.c.k, West, don"t. The last thing we need is Jett losing his s.h.i.t tonight," Hunter warns him.

I eye West. "Thank you for the compliment but I think Hunter"s right. Let"s not rile Jett up tonight."

"I know I"ve said it before, but I f.u.c.king like you, Presley. You say it like it is," West says.

Van"s been lounging in his chair, an angry glare fixed on his face. But he looks at me now and asks, "Has Jett convinced you to photograph our next tour yet?"

"We haven"t really discussed it."

"You should consider it. Your photography is f.u.c.king amazing. We"d be lucky to have you." It"s the nicest he"s been to me so far, and I"m floored by his kind words.

"Thank you," I say to him, and he nods and then goes back to his angry glaring. I"m thinking Van"s a man of little words.

I chat with West and Hunter for another couple of minutes before excusing myself to go to the ladies" room. When I arrive there, the line is five deep, and I kill time by texting Erin.

Me: At charity event with Jett. You should see him in a suit...

Erin: Shut it. Don"t tell me any more b.i.t.c.h.

Me: LOL Erin: You heard from your a.s.shole husband again?

Me: Not since he showed at my door two days ago.

Erin: Good. Sorry, gotta go chick. Talk to you later xx Me: Night xx I finally reach the end of the line, and five minutes later, I"m heading back out to the table. The sight I"m greeted with when I get there takes me aback. Lennon"s here and he and Van are going head to head over something. Both men are furious about whatever it is.

"You wouldn"t know the meaning of f.u.c.king loyalty," Van spits at Lennon.

"She told me you two were over. How the f.u.c.k was I to know she was lying?"

"It"s called friendship, motherf.u.c.ker. We were friends, and you don"t do that to a friend. You don"t f.u.c.k his fiancee behind his f.u.c.king back."

"Do you f.u.c.king listen, Van? I didn"t know you were still together."

"Yeah, well, it"s not good enough. You should have asked me, not her. She wasn"t your f.u.c.king friend, I was."

Jett steps in to try and break them apart because they look like they"re at the point where fists could start flying any minute. "Van, leave it. He"s not f.u.c.king worth it."

Van"s eyes are wild when he looks at Jett. "I told you coming tonight was a bad f.u.c.king idea."

Jett directs his attention to Lennon. "You need to leave. Now."

Lennon shifts his gaze and stops when he sees me. "Presley? What the h.e.l.l are you doing here?"

Jett swings around to look between Lennon and me. "You know this a.s.shole?" he demands.

"Yes."

Before I can explain myself further, Lennon says, "She"s my wife, a.s.shole. Get your f.u.c.king eyes off her."

Jett looks like he"s about to explode with anger. "What the f.u.c.k?" he roars at no one in particular, and I"m not sure if he"s directing that at Lennon or me.

s.h.i.t, this is a cl.u.s.terf.u.c.k.

"I was your wife," I correct Lennon.

"You still are," Lennon says.

"On paper only. Give me six months, and I"ll rectify that."

Jett interrupts us. Looking at Lennon, he says, "Like I said, you need to f.u.c.king leave."

I nod in agreement and Lennon a.s.sesses the situation for a moment before finally doing what Jett suggested.

Van glares at him until he can"t see him anymore and then he says, "f.u.c.k it, Jett, I"m out. Sorry man, but I can"t be in the same room as him or I will f.u.c.king punch him, and that"s the last thing we need." His face is a mask of anger and apology.

Jett nods. "Yeah, you"re right. You should go."

Van doesn"t wait around and a moment later he"s gone, and I"m left with Jett staring at me. He"s still angry but there"s a calmness to it now. "You"re married to Lennon?" He"s incredulous and I don"t blame him. I haven"t mentioned my marriage at all.

"Yes."

"Why didn"t you tell me?"

"We split up six months ago, and I"m done with him. I"m just waiting for the year to be up so I can file for divorce. I don"t consider myself married anymore."

His chest heaves and he seems relieved with that answer. "Thank f.u.c.k."

I move to where he is and lay a hand on his chest. "I promise there"s nothing left there," I say softly.

He grabs my waist and pulls me into his s.p.a.ce. "I believe you, sweetheart. I"m more surprised by the fact I"ve known Lennon for years but I"ve not once met you. I knew he was married but never knew who to. How the f.u.c.k did you guys work it that way? If you were my wife, I wouldn"t let you out of my sight."

"He didn"t want me on tour with him and because I was busy with my work, he had no trouble selling that to me. It hurt, though." My voice cracks on my last few words, and Jett wraps me in his arms.

"f.u.c.k," he mutters. "He"s an a.s.shole, baby. You"re better off without him."

"I know," I mumble into his body. "But he"s told me he"ll do anything to get me back, and when Lennon wants something, he"ll do anything to get it."

Jett lets me go enough to look down into my eyes. There"s a fierce determination in his. "So will I, Presley, and I want you. If Lennon thinks he can come back and pick up where he left off, he can f.u.c.king think again. You"re mine now, not his."

Keep An Eye Out For All Your Reasons #2 Coming Soon Join my newsletter to keep up to date with my releases: ABOUT NINA LEVINE.

Nina Levine is an Aussie writer who writes stories about hot, alpha men and the tough, independent women they love.

When she isn"t creating with words, she loves to create with paint and paper. Often though, she can be found curled up with a good book and some chocolate.

Facebook: Twitter: Keep up to date with my books at my website Join my readers group on Facebook: Storm MC Series In Order: Storm (Storm MC #1) Fierce (Storm MC #2) Blaze (Storm MC #2.5) Revive (Storm MC #3) Havoc Series Destined Havoc (Havoc #1) Coming Soon Slay (Storm MC #4) 21st November 2014

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.

I"d like to thank the authors I worked with on the Owned Anthology that All Your Reasons was written for. It"s been an amazing journey so far and I can"t wait for the anthology to release. Jani Kay, thanks for being you and suggesting this idea in the first place. Without you, this wouldn"t even be happening. I"ve loved working with all the authors on this anthology but I do need to give a shout out to Lyra for doing the formatting you rock!! And Lilliana for all your time designing the website and graphics....sometimes more than once! Nothing was ever a trouble for either of you ladies and I am so very thankful for the time you put in.

To my beta readers Melanie, Christina, Paula, Amanda & Becca thank you so much ladies! Your feedback was invaluable and I truly appreciate the time you gave me to do it.

To Jenny at Editing 4 Indies. Wow, this is the first time we"ve worked together and I need to say a HUGE thank you for doing it at the last minute for me. You made the process so easy and I am very thankful.

To my friends and family... thank you for being patient with me while I have ignored you to get this book done. I love you.

To my PA and friend, Melanie Sa.s.symum, thank you for everything you do for me. You help keep me sane in the madness of it all, babe. I love you for it all.

To my Stormchasers. I hope you love Jett as much as you love our bikers! He doesn"t have the a.s.shole in him that they do but I kinda love that about him. Thank you for all your support, encouragement and most importantly, your friendship. I would be lost without you, ladies!

To Louisa, my gorgeous cover designer, you always make the process so easy and come up with the perfect cover pretty much first go every time. I love working with you and am so thankful to have you as my designer.

To bloggers, thank you so very much for everything you do to help me. You ladies have hearts of gold!

To my readers! Thank you for reading my books and I hope you loved Jett as much as I do.

LOVE ON WALL STREET SERIES.

DEBONAIR: Part 1 Jani Kay Copyright 2014 JANI KAY All Rights Reserved.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author"s imagination or are used fict.i.tiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Cover Artist: Louisa Maggio Edited by: Lauren McKellar All rights reserved. No part of this book may be distributed for commercial or non-commercial purposes, copied, or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except for brief quotations embodied for reviews.

This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only.

This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient.

If you"re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy.

Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

WARNING:.

Adult content: s.e.xual Situations & Language Recommended 18 +

DEDICATION.

To Andrea - my own Little Miss Sunshine.